Inspection Detail

Inspection: 305477366 - Zuellig Botanicals Inc Dba Bi Nutraceuticals

Inspection Information - Office: Long Beach District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 2:45 p.m. on September 20, 2004, Employee #1, a milling associate, was working for a foods supplement manufacturing company. He was cleaning out a hopper under a dust collector serving a Nelmor Milling Machine. Employee #1 believed that he had instructed his coworker to shut off the machine. The room was noisy and the coworker did not hear him. He was not aware of a problem, but the hopper would not empty because a bump hat had lodged itself above the rotary air lock at the bottom of the hopper. He was trying to get the material flowing by sticking an air lance in from the top. He went to the discharge and placed his right hand at the outlet of the rotary air lock to determine if anything was coming out. His hand was caught by the rotating blades in the airlock and his arm was pulled into the machine. Employee #1 suffered an avulsion of the tissue on the palmer side of his right arm from the lower palm to the middle of his forearm. The radius, ulna and wrist were fractured and skin grafts were required. He was hospitalized one month.

Keywords: FRACTURE, CAUGHT BY, CAUGHT BETWEEN, NOISE, STRUCK BY, ARM, NIP POINT, COMMUNICATION